Art stuff to do around town

Offices, is a play written by Ethan Coen, one half of the brothers who brought us No Country For Old Men, Raising Arizona and Fargo. It concerns the ups and downs of working in an office. The play runs 7:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. on Sundays at Aux Dog Theatre (3011 Monte Vista). If you go see this, you will have a good time, but I can't ensure you won't be a) shot in the head with a cattle gun, b) mercilessly hunted by Randall "Tex" Cobb or c) killed and fed into a wood chipper by a creepy blond guy.

Part one in a series

I recently found out I am going to be a father. In order to take care of business, I will be returning to my favorite state, Oklahoma, where the baby, not yet among us, is going to be born. His or her mom lives there also.

I used to be a police reporter there. I was never bored. People got shot in the head and walked inside, retrieved a gun and shot back. Well, that might have happened once. Running gunfights between gang members were called "justified." That did happen. It was legal to shoot someone if they bothered you. This last one isn't true.

Oklahoma is crazy. Lawton is crazier. I should probably catch up on the local news, so I can be better prepared.

Comanche County Sheriff's Office detectives are investigating a bizarre report filed Friday in which he claims his wife has cheated him out of tens of thousands of dollars by taking donations for a fake company she claimed helped American firefighters in addition to lying about multiple pregnancies over the last several years.

A bench warrant with a $10,000 bond was issued for the woman's arrest Friday, one day after she filed for an emergency protective order against her husband, 51. The order was denied and court records show the judge issued the warrant for contempt of court, or the accusation she was not truthful in a sworn statement.

The two had been living as man and wife west of Lawton for several years, but the woman claimed she worked for Cal-Fire Angels of Mercy and was "fighting fires in America and other countries around the globe," an incident report said. Her husband was reportedly introduced to his wife over the Internet by another woman, "Jennifer Henson," whom he said was later killed while fighting a fire in Australia.

There is no documented proof of Hinson's death, yet the couple had an urn at their home containing her ashes, according to the Sheriff's Department.

Soon after their marriage, the man's wife told him she was pregnant and was having twins, but she refused to allow him to accompany her to doctor's appointments. The alleged victim gave his wife thousands of dollars for tests and spent even more on baby items, which he purchased in pairs.

The report said the man's wife went to McKinney, Texas, where she told him the twins died in childbirth in February 2008. CCSO investigators say there are no records of the children's births, deaths or cremation, yet, again, two urns were placed on the mantle of their home. The man later discovered they were filled with flour.

Prior to the "deaths," the victim said he had donated over $30,000 to Cal-Fire Angels of Mercy in separate transactions, which were in care of his wife. She had told him the money was for widows and families of deceased firefighters.

The man even said he performed recruiting work for the company and was never paid, the report said. Investigators say the organization doesn't exist. Now he believes everything his wife told him was part of "an elaborate ruse," the report said.

Investigators for the sheriff's department spoke to the woman Tuesday, and she said she was in an unidentified Dallas, Texas hospital, where she had just given birth to a set of twins. She reportedly sent pictures of the children to her husband via email, but the detectives determined they were copies of images from the Internet.

Records show the court also granted the man an emergency, temporary annulment of their marriage in order to protect his assets. Authorities have also been told to "be on the lookout" for the woman. If anyone has information about this incident, contact the Comanche County Sheriff's Office, 353-4280.

Drag queens and aluminum

Spring is springing and summer is just around the corner. What better way to celebrate than a Psycho Beach Party with The Dolls? Our fair city's premier drag troupe will send up old-school beach movies and Hitchcock thrillers in their latest romp. The madness begins March 18 and continues through March 27 at the Albuquerque Little Theatre. Shows begin at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sundays. Call 242-4750 for reservations or go online at albuquerquelittletheatre.org. Tickets are $15.

Two.

Apparently, aluminum is useful for more than just wrapping around my head to keep interstellar beings from stealing my thoughts. The goons of the Aluminum Show will be playing with metal and entertaining you at Popejoy Hall on Friday and Saturday. Show times are 8 p.m. each night, with an additional 3 p.m. matinee on Saturday. Come see the aluminum snake and fly across the stage. Tickets range from $22 to $35 and are available at unmtickets.com.

Show at the Main Library

Curator and illustrator Shirl Sazynski says narrative painting, storytelling, cartooning, character design and comic art produced by female artists is often vastly different in style, subject matter and theme from their male contemporaries.

Come by the Main Library (501 Copper NW) to decide for yourself. Telltale features works by Sazynski and True Blood comics writer Mariah McCourt, among others. The show runs through March 31.